Sunday, May 16, 2010

52 Weeks of Online American Digital Archives and Databases: Louisiana

This is the 19th post in a weekly series of Online American Digital Archives and Databases found for free at state, county, municipal, college and university history, library, and archive websites, as well as public and private library and museum sites, and historical and genealogical society sites.


LOUISiana Digital Library - http://louisdl.louislibraries.org/ - "...an online library of Louisiana institutions that provide over 144,000 digital materials. Its purpose is to make unique historical treasures from the Louisiana institution's archives, libraries, museums, and other repositories in the state electronically accessible to Louisiana residents and to students, researchers, and the general public in other states and countries. The LOUISiana Digital Library contains photographs, maps, manuscript materials, books, oral histories, and more that document history and culture."

Louisiana State Archives - http://www.sos.louisiana.gov/tabid/53/Default.aspx - from this page you can access the Research Library with its online indexes (New Orleans Ship Passenger List Online Index,January-July 1851; State Confederate Pension Applications Database; State Death Index; Orleans Parish Births and Marriages Databases); Multimedia Archives with some online material (television collections, oral histories, political history collection, Louisiana governors, Academy of Politics, and Black History Collection); as well as some images from some of the Events, Exhibits, and Collections (B.R. Art League Collection; WWI Collection; Freedom Train; and more)

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Armistad Research Center - http://www.amistadresearchcenter.org/ - "the nation's oldest, largest and most comprehensive independent archive specializing in the history of African Americans and other Ethnic Minorities." The digital projects include an online finding aid database, the LOUISiana Digital Library (see above), and the American Missionary Association Timeline. This project is under the auspices of Tulane University.

Centenary College of Louisiana Archives and Online Resources - http://www.centenary.edu/library/archives/online - this Methodist college has a lot of documents regarding their denomination, as well as "Researching Your United Methodist Ancestors" Guide; a great resource if your ancestors were members of this denomination!

Dillard University Will W. Alexander Library Archives - http://books.dillard.edu/Archives.html - the archives' collection provides information on Dillard University, Straight College, the United Methodist Church, Black Education in the South, Flint-Goodridge Hospital, New Orleans University, the American Missionary Association, and New Orleans History. They include the history of Dillard, online finding aids (descriptive only), digitized collections (the Dillard Bulletin) and a list of special collections.

Louisiana State University (Baton Rouge) Special Collections - http://www.lib.lsu.edu/special/cc/ - while the majority of the university's digital collection is at the LOUISiana Digital Library (see above), the university's website contains digital university archives documenting the history of LSU with photos and printed materials. This site also contains the T. Harry Williams Center for Oral History and the resource-rich Louisiana Newspaper Project, a must-visit collection.

Louisiana State University (Shreveport) Special Collections - http://www.lsus.edu/library/Archives.htm - while this site does not have a lot of online material (their digital collection is at the LOUISiana Digital Library), they have excellent online finding aids and descriptions of their onsite collections. Online indexes include the Shreveport Times Index (1991-2009), North Louisiana History (1970-2005, searchable by author or subject), The Fighting Men of Louisiana, and Shreveport City Records (Indexes to the ordinances and regulations passed by the Shreveport City Council, 1974-1979; organized by date and subject). Also included are LSUS Faculty and Alumni Authors 2008-2009 Bibliographies.

Loyola University New Orleans Monroe Library Digital Collections - http://library.loyno.edu/services_collections/speccoll/digital_collections.php - electronic theses; Jesuit Scrapbooks from the new Orleans Province; Lafcadio Hearn Correspondence Collection; Loyola Maroon (student newspaper); Anthony J. Stanonis Pamphlet Collection; Fr. Louis J. Twomey, S.J.: Loyola's Voice for Labor; New Orleans, Race and the Catholic Church, 1947-56; Walker Percy Exhibit

McNeese State University Frazar Memorial Library Archives and Special Collections - http://www.library.mcneese.edu/depts/archive/index.htm - digital collections are at the LOUISiana Digital Library (see above), but the site includes online special projects and guides, including a map and bibliography of the Lake Charles' Fire of 1910, online books about Southwest Louisiana, and an interactive map of Lake Charles in 1948.

Newcomb College Center for Research on Women - http://www.tulane.edu/~wc/text/newarchives.html - online finding aids and exhibits chronicling the rise of women's issues and feminism in the nation and the South, as well as the history of the college.

Tulane University Special Collections - http://specialcollections.tulane.edu/ - online search tool for vertical files; Southeastern Architectural Archives online exhibits; Jazz Archives with the Jazz Archivist online publication; online finding aids for the Manuscripts Department; and the Lousiana Collection with the online political ephemera collection.

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Caddo County Marriage License Index, 1937-present - http://webserver.caddoclerk.com/General/marriage_public.shtml

Jefferson Genealogical Society New Orleans Obituary Index, 1994-2005 - http://www.jgs25.com/obits/deathnx.htm

Jefferson Parish Library Obituary Database - http://www.jefferson.lib.la.us/obit/ObitSearch.asp

The Historic New Orleans Collection - http://www.hnoc.org/ - this is a must-visit site if you have New Orleans ancestors. While there certainly are not a lot of online resources, there is information on their collections as well as online exhibits, podcasts, videos, a downloadable Quarterly, and photos.

New Orleans Notarial Archives - http://www.notarialarchives.org/ - from this site, you can search current and historical land records and other contracts recorded in Orleans Parish. Historical indexes can be searched for free; accessing current records and historical documents requires a fee.

New Orleans Public Library Louisiana Division City Archives and Special Collections - http://nutrias.org/spec/speclist.htm - from this page you can access finding aids and inventories, photos, early recordings, early sheet music, oral histories index, Louisiana Scrapbook collection, maps, online pamphlets, vertical files, a list of WPA materials at the library, the Louisiana Biography/Obituary Index, marriage indexes, indexes to Sanborn maps for New Orleans, newspaper indexes, and much, much more!

New Orleans St. Louis Cemetery No. 1 Tomb and Marker Survey - http://cml.upenn.edu/nola/Searchpgs/L0Introtombsrch2.asp - a project of the University of Pennsylvania

Washington Parish Library System Obituary Index - http://www.washington.lib.la.us/obituaries.htm

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4 comments:

Amy Coffin, MLIS said...

This is such an excellent series. I really appreciate your hard work.

Miriam Robbins said...

Thanks, Amy!

Liz said...

Nice La. roundup. Will post a link on my "Resources" tab of my blog for other La. researchers.

Miriam Robbins said...

Thanks, Liz!